Many universities and other organizations have begun training their employees or students about unconscious bias, and some readers may be thinking about proposing this in their organizations. I don’t mean the training of faculty search committees that has become fairly routine now thanks to efforts like the U. Michigan Advance Program’s STRIDE Faculty Recruitment Workshops, which have set a model for higher education. Instead, I refer to the systematic effort to reach most or nearly all employees, including faculty in universities. This is a big step for any organization to take, though it is easier for some than others. Fortunately, there exist good models in both corporations and universities.

Back to top.2. Career Profile: Astronomer to Infographics MakerFrom: Stuart Vogel via womeninastronomy.blogspot.com

[The AAS Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy and the AAS Employment Committee have compiled dozens of interviews highlighting the diversity of career trajectories available to astronomers. The interviews share advice and lessons learned from individuals on those paths.]

This is our interview with Katie Peek, an astronomer turned data visualizer. After receiving her PhD in astronomy she went to NYU to get a masters in science journalism. She then interned as a writer and editor at Popular Science magazine, and stayed on to become a designer and then an editor. More recently she has transitioned to an independent career as a information graphics editor. She describes her path and her working environment.

Back to top.4. My Favorite News Line Up in One WeekFrom: Daryl Haggard [daryl.haggard@mcgill.ca]

My LinkedIn network sent me the news items below this week. Together with the profiles in the previous post, you can't get a better argument for the strength we, as individuals, as a profession, derive from diversity and inclusion. In quotes is the person in my network connected to the news article, but these links are full of amazing scientists with diverse backgrounds doing incredible work.

Back to top.5. Engaging Minority Scholars in Science Should Also Include Addressing Isolation and Mental WellnessFrom: Daryl Haggard [daryl.haggard_at_mcgill.ca]

by DNLee

Diversity efforts in higher education and sciences are overdue for a follow-up conversation about mental wellness and the feelings of isolation that many scholars — from college students to faculty members — often feel.

Is it me or is science a sad and lonely place? Or am I going through a tough season right now?

During my dissertation studies I hit the 4 year slump BIG TIME. I went nearly a year without collecting any significant data or heck even laying eyes on my research subjects. I poured myself into teaching and I said that’s what had me busy. But the truth is, I was woefully unhappy and feeling lost. I never once thought of quitting or dropping out of the program – because teaching college level biology and studying animal behavior was still my goal – but my focus was off and heart just couldn't take it.

Back to top.6. It's Time to Abolish Science's Boys ClubFrom: Megan Watzke [mwatzke_at_cfa.harvard.edu]

by Megan Watzke and Kimberly Arcand

Let's celebrate the UN's International Day of Women and Girls in Science by vowing to abolish the sexism and other prejudices in fields of science, tech, engineering, and math.

This has been a challenging year for women in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math, otherwise known by the acronym STEM. To be sure, every year is challenging for women and other under represented groups. But lately more of those issues that plague them are being brought to light.

Recently, the quantum molecular science world was in uproar. The preliminary list of approximately 25 speakers for the International Congress of Quantum Chemistry (ICQC) was published online, with no women speakers listed. One reaction to this list was to set up a petition to 'condemn gender-biased discriminatory practices of which ICQC-2015 is the most recent example'. This resulted in an apology and a new speaker list with six women speakers.

Sadly though, this is not an isolated incident: men-only invited conference speaker lists are all too common.

How can we get gender balance right? To begin with, it's worth reminding ourselves why gender balance is important.

I just finished reading Hope Jahren's forthcoming book "Lab Girl," due out April 5. It's somewhere between a popular science book and a memoir – two tricky genres. Either one, done poorly, can feel like impenetrable jibberish or self-indulgent navel-gazing. Luckily, Jahren handles both styles well.